Council leaves planning commission denial in place for Subaru permit change over trash pickup; neighbors and applicant clash over safety and routes

The Santa Clara City Council on Oct. 7 declined to overturn a Planning Commission decision that had denied a requested change to the conditional use permit for a Subaru dealership on Stevens Creek Boulevard. The applicant sought to modify permit conditions so trash collection would be handled from the alley behind the site (Cecil Avenue), instead of from Stevens Creek; the Planning Commission denied the change and the council did not sustain an appeal, so the commission decision stands.

Staff briefed the council that the dealership had been approved in 2016 with a condition requiring on‑site trash enclosure and Stevens Creek pickup, but the operator had not built the originally approved enclosure and instead used a neighboring lot for collection. City staff said many nearby commercial properties that front Cecil already arrange pickup from Cecil and that Mission Trail, the franchise hauler, prefers Cecil pickup because Stevens Creek is a busy multi‑lane…